This article shares reflections in the rearview mirror of a departing board chair. The author has served seven years as board chair of Redwood Day School (California). As he departs, he figures out a few things that might be worth sharing. The author shares his responses to some Frequently Unasked Questions.

Now that the first decade of the 21st century has been completed, the authors contend that it's time to stop talking about the qualities of 21st century schools and actually start being 21st century schools. The challenge for most school leaders in schools is not in establishing a relevant mission, but in being too cautious and deliberate about…

In the author's work as a diversity professional, both as one school's long-term diversity director and now as a consultant and workshop leader for many schools, she has found that building a diverse faculty has been, and continues to be, a profound challenge for most schools, even after decades of effort. This article presents a case study on…

Lucinda Lee Katz, head of Marin Country Day School (California), received the 2009 NAIS Diversity Leadership Award. This article presents an edited excerpt of her acceptance speech. In this speech, she outlines what is necessary to move school communities ahead in one's diversity work.

Suggests that private day schools cannot imitate boarding schools in offering a full "menu" of academics, athletics, and the arts to each student. Both student interests and parental finances would be better served if these three components were separated into optional tracks, each with its own tuition cost. (SJL)

Discussing the role of independent schools in education today, this article touches on problems facing independent schools, their steady growth, finance sources, and changes in structure, climate, teacher roles, and curriculum. (DS)

Traditionally informal, teacher evaluation in the private school sector is changing. Although faculty and administrators view the situation from different perspectives, there is agreement that more formal methods are more satisfactory. Boarding schools differ significantly from day schools in their approach to teacher evaluation. (SB)